Chapter 1 "The Beginning"

My life started on a warm spring evening on May 8th, 1982. Sometimes, I wish it would have ended on that day. As long as I can remember my life growing up in a small northwestern town in Ohio pretty much sucked. Every childhood has its ups and downs, however mine had more downs than most. My father worked in a factory, same with my mother, and supporting two kids on such pay equalled poverty. It was never easy being me from the get go. When I was around 5-6, I had a serious ear infection which lead to my hearing to fade away. This lead to my speech being poor, which led to me getting tubes put in my ears. After I got the tubes put in, my hearing improved greatly, however I still had to worry about my speech. Thus, leading to speech classes. Teachers felt I wasn't ready to move on so they held me back a year. Being such a young age it really didn't matter to me, I didnt know any different. I remember leaving class to go to my "speech class". Even at such a young age I felt so distant from all the others. While I was in speech class trying to pronounce words, all my friends were reading books and progressing. I myself felt so little. Everyone had their jokes and comments but I leanred very quickly to shrug them off. I remember hating my name so much I came home wanting my parents to change it. Kindergarden was rough, they would always tease me and sing "Who built the ark" just to get me going. Oh how I hated my name. I remember everyone talking what their parents did and where they lived and they always seemed really happy. Life back home wasn't so happy for me. My father was an alcoholic whose routine consisted of work, bars, sex with random women and then eventually coming home to take his frustrations out on us. My father was no saint, nor a good father by any means. Always making promises and never keeping them. Hitting me for no reason, yelling at my mom, hitting my sister and beating the crap out of my dog, which eventually died from a severe beating. He told me she ran away, but come to find out a few years ago, he beat her with a cane. It was never ending. I remember coming home one day crying because a kid accidently hit me in the face with an umbrella and it cut my cheek up pretty bad on the inside. My dad beat me for disrupting TV. Yes, thats right, what a father figure. He was very abusive although I dont recall him ever hitting my mother, just verbally abusing her. Most who know me, knows I hate my father with a passion, however they don't know the entire story of why.

Like most kids fathers teach them how to play catch or throw a football or something sports oriented. Not mine, hell the only rason I ever got into sports was due to my mom. No matter what was going on she would drop what she was doing to help me. To go out in the yard and play catch with me till dark when she should have been sleeping before work. My sister Sarah who is 5 years older than me, was out playing backyard football with some friends. They said I was too young to play so I went home pouting and my mom took me down and asked If I could play and they let me. I was a natural. Not to bragg but being only 8yrs old outplaying some 13yr olds! Nothing made my mom more happy than watching me run around out there having fun. Ever since then they would always come ask if I wanted to play, Sarah would always get mad because I was a little tag along like a lost puppy. She soon got over it with time.

Every year my town would have a festivel. I was 8 and with my best friend looking for my dad to get some money for food. Sure enough found him. Found him making out with someone other than my mom. My friends dad noticed us and quickly brushed us off to the side and covered for him. I wasn't stupid, I knew what was going on. I soon became very sick. I didn't know how to tell anyone. I loved my mom and I wanted to tell her but how? Im 8yrs old, what if she didnt believe me? After being sick for over a month I decided to tell my sister. Sarah, being old enough already knew that my dad was cheating on my mom. My mom also knew but was staying with my dad for the sake of us kids. So Sarah convinced me to tell my mom and that was the straw that broke the camels back. She wanted a divorce but we had no where to go.

A few months later I was at my friends house when I heard my father call for me. I came home, my mom was sitting at the table crying. I didnt know what was going on then my dad took me to my room and told me that my grandpa had passed away. I remember him telling me he was in a better place. That was the only real time I remember him even being close to a father figure. I was upset about my grandpa dying yet I just wanted to be with my mom, when I seen her cry, my whole world stopped. Yes, Im a mommas boy! The funeral I can barely remember. However, what I do remember I was sitting in the back by myself and I didnt shed one single tear. Just stared straight thinking to myself, remembering all the good times with my Grandpa. A month later my parents decided to go camping, probably one last trip as a family before they split up. I was down at my friends house as my dad was loading everything to go. Suddenly an ambulance rushes by, the phone rings. My dad was being rushed to the hospital. My friends parents informed me that my dad had a stroke and was being life flighted to Cincinatti, almost 300 miles away! Thats when my life got crazy. He had brain surgery and they werent even sure he was going to make it. My mom was by his side and it being close to the school year us kids had to stay behind. I went and stayed with my best friend and Sarah stayed with hers. My family was no more. In 3 months I seen my mom a total of 4 days. Living with another family seeing them so happy, even though they accepted me, I felt so left out and lost. I barely even got to see my sister and she was in the same town. My grades started to slip, I didnt care about much. I was a depressed 8yr old boy. They tried counseling me, they tried making me feel better, but nothing worked. I had no family! Finally, my mom decided I should go live with my cousin since they are family. Just wasnt the same either. Every now and then Sarah would come stay the night with me. It meant a lot to the both of us just to see each other. Finally they decided my dad was stable enough to be sent home. With my dad being helpless and my mom needing to work to support us kids, my uncle and cousin Edward moved in with us to help out around the house and bills. Edward was Sarah's age and like a big brother to me. He looked out for me and I felt like nothing could happen to me as long as he was around. He was the father figure I never had. Brought wrestling to my attention, showed me a few moves and I was hooked. I enrolled in the wrestling program, had my first tournament and dominated. I remember looking up in the crowd and seeing my mom sitting there as I was getting the medal put around my neck. I will never forget that moment for as long as I live.

Around January of the same year, my mom, Sarah and I moved north about 15 miles and my parents were officially seperated. We had moved in with a guy my mom was seeing for a few months. Bill a few years older than my mom was a hardcore southern man. Born and raised in the south. When I first met him the only thing I could think about was trying not to laugh at his accent. Thick as can be! Edward had an accent too, because he was from down south but not like this. Anyway, he treated my mom like she should be treated and we were a happy family. New school, new life, a whole new beginning.